Vienna, 10th District: Favoriten

I have read or browsed quite a few guidebooks for Vienna, including some that make suggestions for "off the beaten track" approaches to the Austrian capital. The latter ones usually recommend things that are
slightly less touristy than the main attractions; in none of these books I have come across a single reference to the
10th district, Favoriten. I find that unfair - there are so many reasons why one could want to go to Favoriten: To get mugged; to get raped; to get molested by a gang of foreign teenagers - or simply to watch a bum take a decent poo in
the public.

As you can see, I am not a big fan of Favoriten. In terms of real estate, it is among the
cheapest districts of Vienna - for a good reason. But actually, it′s not all that bad. There is indeed a very large percentage of foreign residents, high rates of street crime and nothing of interest to see. But there are also some semi-respectable corners and according to rumour, there are people who succeeded in raising children in Favoriten that did not become drug addicts.

It might be a "bad" district by Austrian terms, by international urban standards, especially the south of Favoriten is actually
quite bearable. Only the area near Südbahnhof Station (soon
to become Vienna's central station) and some selected neighbourhoods are genuinely suckish.

Commercial & Residential District: Favoriten

There are more than 150,000 residents that call Favoriten home. The generous Wikipedia article even lists a few sightseeing attractions. There is the previously mentioned Südbahnhof, currently a massive construction site (as of 2008), but soon to be the
main and central station of Vienna. I assume the surroundings will generally improve after the completion of the property.

The echo of the Empire can be heard in the Starhemberg Kaserne army base. And there are a few churches of limited interest in terms of sightseeing - the parish churches of
Oberlaa and Laarberg or the Salvatorkirche, for example.
There is a historic 19th century water-tower(woo-hoo!). Most of the southern parts of Favoriten consists of residential, commercial or recreational areas - meaning
apartment blocks, office blocks or parks.

Some of Favoriten's Historic Attractions

Here you find the "Spinnerin am Kreuz", a Gothic "Bildstock" or piety column. This was once a common thing to have in (Eastern) Austrian towns, but relatively few these days. Legend has it that the wife of a merchant, who had left to participate in a
crusade, came to this site every day to work with her spinning wheel
and wait for the husband′s return.

After the crusade had long been over, everybody told her to forget about him and get married again - the faithful wife, however, continued her habit and waited until - surprise - her husband actually did return. Out of gratefulness, they
endowed the construction of the "Spinnerin am Kreuz" to thank god for the safe return.
Nearby you find the Wienerberg Hill with
lots of modern office towers.

Other sights: The Kurzentrum Oberlaa is the only significant thermal spa within Vienna and currently under re-furbishment. The associated parks are worth a closer look, too. South of this area, Lower Austria starts - with
vineyards just across the border. Here in this area you can discover the nice (almost charming?) side of Favoriten.
It's not terribly big.